


heartstrings

by starboardsunset



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Friendship/Love, M/M, Non-Idol AU, Red String of Fate, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-07
Updated: 2020-12-07
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:33:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27929812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starboardsunset/pseuds/starboardsunset
Summary: His eyes follow the thin, red line, from his pinky, past the desks and all the students, up to the front of the classroom.Up to Hiiro's hand.
Relationships: Amagi Hiiro & Suou Tsukasa, Amagi Hiiro/Suou Tsukasa
Comments: 6
Kudos: 31





	heartstrings

**Author's Note:**

> (for the purposes of this fic theyre normal high schoolers and they're in the same class because it's my ao3 and i get to pick the au that bends to my will!! also the school layout isnt based on ymnsk at all.... im quite literally writing out of my ass here)
> 
> more tsukahii!!!! *pops some non-alcoholic champagne* cheers lads

A delicate red string dangles from the pinky finger of Tsukasa Suou's left hand. It has a faint glow to it at times, and other days he barely notices it's there at all.

Some days, it swings back and forth, and other days there's an insistent tugging on it. He finds it to be a bit annoying, childish, a nuisance and a distraction. At least he's right handed— he would detest having that endless pulling occur while trying to write. 

He makes an effort not to think about it too much. As the only son of the Suou family, surely he has more important things to ponder on. And yet...

Perhaps he's simply impatient, or perhaps he's a romantic at heart. Sometimes, he'll twirl the dainty string around his finger, weave it around his knuckles, and find solace in the fact that somewhere out there, someone is watching the red string dance, waiting for him too.

Cue his first year of high school, and he still hasn't met his soulmate. It's to be expected, he supposes, but there's a part of him that still feels disappointed. A few of his peers have found theirs. Not many, but enough to make a small pit of jealousy form in his stomach. It doesn't feel fair, and he knows nothing in life is fair, really, but he allows himself to feel that envy for his own sake. 

Midway through his second year of high school, there's a transfer student. At least, that's what everyone's saying, and even if Tsukasa wouldn't typically stand for such gossip, he's curious. According to such gossip, there's a transfer student, and his brother goes to a university nearby. 

Everyone's _also_ saying that the pair of them are total weirdos (which does seem rather judgmental. Rude, even). 

Apparently, name is Hiiro, and his brother's name is Rinne, or something like that— he wasn't able to eavesdrop all that well with the general humdrum and commotion in the halls, and he wouldn't bother initiating such gossip.

The bell rings, and Tsukasa is already in his seat for homeroom. He makes a point to be punctual, after all, hoping to motivate his peers into showing up on time (it's futile, and Mitsuru-kun will always arrive at the last second, he knows). At least the punctuality makes him feel a little better about himself.

Once all his classmates finally trickle in, their homeroom teacher arrives. And behind her, there's a boy, perhaps a bit taller than Tsukasa. He has unkempt red hair that falls over his eyes a bit, and Tsukasa notes that it seems to be shaved at the back and around his ears. 

He wears his uniform neatly— almost perfectly, except for the red cardigan beneath the blazer. It looks cozy. He speaks up with a bold and bright voice, clear as the blue sky.

"Hello! Hiiro Amagi. It's nice to meet you all!" He says with the widest grin Tsukasa's ever seen. "Let's get along!"

Then he gives a small wave to the class. 

Then, Tsukasa feels the smallest of tugs on his left hand. Pinky finger, to be exact.

His eyes follow the thin, red line, from his finger, past the desks and the students, up to the front of the classroom. 

Up to Hiiro's hand.

He makes a small, surprised noise, locking eyes with the transfer student. He can assume he's sporting a rather mortified expression, or perhaps something akin to a deer in headlights. In turn, Hiiro keeps up the goofy grin, as if he's totally unaffected by it all. 

Frankly, that pisses Tsukasa off a little.

Only a little, though. They're soulmates, so he's sure they'll—

The teacher turns to Tsukasa, and his stomach drops. _There'_ _s no way she could tell, right?_

"Ah— Suou-kun, as class president, would you mind giving Amagi-kun a quick tour of the school?"

He almost lets out a sigh of relief at that. Instead, he stands up quietly, and murmurs a shaky yet polite "Of course."

The walk to the front feels like a death march, somehow. He can practically feel Himemiya shooting him a confused look from behind his back.

This isn't exactly how he thought this would all go. No, it was supposed to be romantic, or at least _somewhat_ romantic, like the movies and the books and the songs had said. 

Instead, Tsukasa just feels horribly awkward.

He makes it up there without tripping, or doing anything else as embarrassing, so he counts it as a win. He gives a brief nod to Hiiro, then wordlessly heads for the doorway, hoping that's enough of an indication to get the message of ' _follow me, please'_ across. 

Apparently it is, because Hiiro trails after him, shutting the door politely with a quiet click. 

They simply stand there for a moment, neither of them making a move.

Simultaneously, they speak up.

"We're classmates," says Tsukasa. "We're soulmates," says Hiiro.

Another beat of silence passes.

"So, ah, this is our homeroom," Tsukasa mumbles quickly, eager to change the subject. "Do your best to be p-punctual, please."

Hiiro nods. "Okay!" Then, "Are you not going to introduce yourself as well?"

"Eh?"

"I don't know your name."

"Oh. Er— Suou, T-Tsukasa."

"Then it's nice to meet you, Tsukasa-kun!" Hiiro smiles, tugging on his string lightly, perhaps even subconsciously. Tsukasa flinches a bit.

"Right... nice to meet you too, Hiiro-kun." Tsukasa gives him a tight lipped smile, beginning to walk down the hall. "You'll find most of your classes on the second floor, except for P.E., and..." He trails off when he feels another tug on his string.

_Not subconscious, then?_

Hiiro seems to notice his hesitation, or perhaps Tsukasa's just giving him a rather sour look, but either way, he says a quick " _Sorry!"_ and ducks his head down a bit. When he looks back up, his smile has gone from goofy to sheepish. "I don't mean to make you uncomfortable, Tsukasa-kun. I appreciate your help!"

"It's alright?" Tsukasa says, but it comes out as more of a question than a statement. _At least he's got good manners._ "It's just... I may need to adjust a bit, that's all."

"To us being soulmates?" 

_Hearing that aloud is so unfamiliar._ "Ah— yes."

"Alright! So, P.E. is on which floor?"

_I totally don't understand him at all!_ "First floor, as the gym has it's own building."

"I see! That makes sense."

Tsukasa nods. "The library can be found on the first floor too, along with the main office and the school shop."

"What kind of things does the school shop sell?" Hiiro asks. 

"Mostly snacks, I believe... supplies too— extra pencils and the like." 

They near the stairs, and Hiiro looks at Tsukasa as if he's asking _'Can we?'_

"We can visit it now if you'd like." _It constitutes as a tour of the school, I would think._

Hiiro looks excited at that. "That'd be nice! I forgot to eat this morning." He chuckles, something melodious that makes Tsukasa feel warm from his head to his toes. 

"Alright, I'll lead the way, then."

It begins to become less awkward as they make their way down the flight of stairs, the tension in the air resolving into something a little more pleasant.

"Do you have any favourite snacks, Tsukasa-kun?" 

"Hm... they have baked goods, like bread, so that sort of thing tends to be good?" Tsukasa suggests with a shrug. "What sorts of flavours do you like?"

"Ah! I don't mind anything, really, but lemon is my favourite!"

"I believe they have some sort of lemon loaf there, or perhaps a muffin...? Either way, I'm sure we'll find something."

The shop isn't busy at all right now, considering most other students are in class at the moment. Hiiro marvels over the shelves of snacks, pointing different things out to Tsukasa, saying he's never seen such a selection before with a smile. 

He picks out a few things, paying for them with his pocket change. (Tsukasa offers to pay, but Hiiro says it's alright, after all, he wouldn't want to be indebted to a friend already. Tsukasa considers insisting that it's fine, really, but he relents.)

They make their way to the courtyard, taking a seat at one of the benches. They're not all that comfortable, but Tsukasa doesn't mind as much today. 

"Tell me about yourself," Hiiro prompts around a mouthful of muffin. 

"I don't think I'm really that interesting," Tsukasa murmurs. "I'm an only child... I can speak English... um, I enjoy s-singing, and I like sweets...? Ah, and my family owns a theatre in town, so I suppose that constitutes as interesting."

Surprisingly ( _or perhaps unsurprisingly, considering their circumstances_ ), Hiiro seems to be interested. "Have you ever performed?" A few crumbs stick to his chin. 

"Eh? No, no, I'm not very good," He laughs nervously, dismissing the notion with a wave of his hand. "What about you? I heard you have a brother?"

Hiiro nods eagerly at that.

"Tell me about him." Tsukasa says, barely registering the softer tone to his own voice.

Tsukasa notes the way Hiiro moves animatedly when talking about his brother, the wistful smile on his face when he recalls his hometown, the excited twinkle in his eye when he explains that his brother had moved here to start on a degree in... something (he couldn't quite remember what, but he was certain it was something cool!).

It's... rather cute, actually. _He's rather cute._

That's not surprising, Tsukasa had realized such the moment Hiiro had walked into the room and smiled at the class, but it's still a rather embarrassing thing to think about. ( _Or perhaps not, considering the circumstances._ )

"...and that's how I ended up here!" Hiiro finishes with a chuckle. "I think it all worked out, considering,"

He pulls a little on the string.

_Considering the circumstances._

"...I know I may not be the ideal soulmate," Hiiro starts, smile dropping a bit. Tsukasa hurries to cut him off.

"It's not that I'm upset at having you as my soulmate, Hiiro-kun!" He explains, because he really isn't. "I think I just had a preconception of what this whole process would be like, and... well, this isn't exactly how I imagined it'd go, if that makes sense?"

"I understand!" Hiiro agrees. A thoughtful pause. "We can be friends first, if you'd like?" 

Tsukasa raises a brow. "Friends?"

"We only just met, it'd be stranger if we just jumped straight into soulmate things right away, I think?" He shrugs. "So let's start as friends!"

Tsukasa thinks about the proposal for a moment. "Is that okay?"

"Well, I don't believe there's any rule about this sort of thing— "

"Ah, no, I meant... is this alright with you? You don't mind?"

"Not really?" Hiiro laughs, posture relaxing a bit as he leans back onto the bench. "I don't feel like there's much rush for anything. I'm happy just to know you, Tsukasa-kun!"

_How forthcoming is he?_

Tentatively, Tsukasa twirls the string around his figure, and pulls on it ever so lightly. 

Hiiro looks to him, smiling at the gesture. His eyes glance down to Tsukasa's wristwatch.

"Ah... what time did we leave at, exactly?"

Tsukasa's eyes go wide. _Oh. Oh no._

"We need to get back to class," he practically wheezes out, scrambling to his feet. Hiiro follows suit, brushing the crumbs from his snack off his uniform.

"I apologize for taking up so much time, I completely neglected—"

"It's fine, Hiiro-kun, really, we just—" He grabs Hiiro's hand and drags him towards the main building. "We need to get back, oh my god."

_I've never been late._ He can practically hear the snide remark from Himemiya already. 

"Okay!" Hiiro says with a laugh on his lips, jogging along and letting himself be dragged by Tsukasa. "Do we have time to stop at the bathrooms though? You never showed me where they are! And—"

Tsukasa shoots him a look.

"Ah! Another time, then."

Though perhaps this isn't exactly what Tsukasa's idea of a soulmate had been... perhaps it's better this way. _At the very least, it'll make this year interesting,_ he thinks, hearing Hiiro's exuberant laughter echo off the walls of the empty stairwell.

**Author's Note:**

> don't mind any errors, it's almost 3 am! :D


End file.
